Gingrich attended school at various military installations and graduated from Baker High School, Columbus, Georgia, in 1961. He received a bachelor's degree from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia in 1965. He received his master's degree from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1968 and his PhD from the same university in 1971. He taught at West Georgia College in Carrollton, Georgia, from 1970 to 1978.

Gingrich was elected as a Republican to the House of Representatives in November 1978. He served ten terms in Congress. He was re-elected to the 106th Congress in November 2000 but did not take his seat. He served as minority whip from 1989-1994 and as Speaker of the House from 1995-1998.

In 1994, Gingrich attempted to nationalize the Congressional elections with his Contract With America[?], a list of campaign promises signed by himself and other Republican candidates for the House of Representatives designed to unite the various factions of the party and provide a contrast with Bill Clinton. In November 1994, Republicans took control of the House of Representatives for the first time since 1954. For the next four years, the Congress under Gingrich's leadership took aim at the embattled president, investigating various scandals and calling for impeachment.

Gingrich became an icon in the Republican party and was respected, if not beloved, by elements of U.S. conservatism. However, his opponents, even those within the Republican party, characterized him as mean-spirited.

Ironically, Gingrich himself faced ethics investigations that ended in him admitting wrongdoing and paying fines. After the 1998 election campaign, in which the Republicans expected big gains but ultimately showed the poorest results in 34 years of any party not in control of the White House, Gingrich resigned from the speakership and from his seat in November 1998.